Firefly Story
by EK
Summary: COMPLETE. A samurai and a geisha come together. Life at the Hotaruya will never be the same.
1. introduction

Hiya, and thanks for reading. This is for the other guy I liked a lot, and I hope I know well enough to write for. But I don't know him enough to think like him, so this is how it turned out. Like "Tenshi", this will not be long, but I hope you like it.

This is all a guess by a fan, and it will probably be contradicted by the anime's manga someday, but that's okay. S7 ain't mine. I just want to see the most expensive anime TV series on a large hi-def TV with a high-quality DVD copy.

…………………………………..

"Headmaster! He's done it again! Two dishes and a teacup!"

"What! Where is she?"

"Yukino-san?"

"Of course, I'm asking for Yukino!"

It was six in the morning, and already more than one woman was shouting.

"Yukino-san! It's Momotaro-san again!"

From one of the rooms deeper in the inn, a young woman groaned in bed. "For the last time," she droned, "his name is NOT Momotaro…"

The door of that room eventually slid open. A lightly built man with bright blonde hair went in, and slunk with his back to the nearest wall. He sighed and smiled sadly at the young woman.

"Please stop practicing on the dishes…" she looked at him from her bed and sleepily acknowledged.

"I wasn't! I was carrying a tray for Mayo," he protested, then raised his left, mechanical arm, twitching at the fingers. "But it started to act up."

She threw up the blanket over her head. "Can you stay clear of the headmaster for this morning, please?" she begged. "I've had a long night, I want to sleep. I can't defend you at all hours."

"Sure," he said, then grinned. "Can I stay here?"

"No."

"Fine, fine," he scratched his head. "I guess I'll stay in the closet again." He slid open the door, and exited.

The woman groaned and sighed one more time before shutting her eyes. "Kami-sama, what in the world did I get into?"

……………………

Yukino's problems with the man with the mechanical arm began two weeks ago, give or take. When most girls and young women might have taken in an injured rabbit or bird, the geisha of Hotaruya found herself taking care of him.

But she was a woman, of a warmer heart than most, even in the time of war. Maybe that was why she agreed to be a geisha, besides that she needed the money for herself and her family. She could not bear the thought of taking sides, supporting this clan or that. As a geisha, she did not have to.

Life at the Hotaruya was generally peaceful, but there were always reminders of the war that surrounded them. Debris from battles in nearby areas floated into the river just behind the inn, which flowed into several caves further on. It was such a common sight, that nobody bothered with the various metal objects that drifted by.

But the day came when Yukino chanced upon a very large object, which got stuck under their bridge.

It actually looked like a floating coffin, when she approached it. The top part was clear, and she found a man inside, who already seemed dead. She looked over the object, and found monitors, buttons, and harnesses. So it was not a coffin; it was one of the things pilots used to get out of a ruined cruiser.

She pressed on a large button at the side of the capsule. A whish of air was heard, and the cover swung open. She got a better view of the man inside. A soldier, there was no doubt about it now. A samurai.

He was roughly her age, just into the thirties, but he looked like he did not come from her part of the planet. His yellow hair was tied back neatly from behind, and the way he wore his uniform was just as neat. But the general neatness was ruined at the torso by patches of blood. Almost the entire left arm sleeve was soaked red. His face was bruised in two places. She was awestruck by the extent of the damage to just one man.

His eyes opened very slowly. He seemed to see her, because his lips widened slowly into a weak smile. "Hey."

"Hey, yourself," she answered automatically.

"….quite pretty…." Yukino made out what he barely said. "….angel?"

"No, sorry," she said.

"Let's see each other again, alright?"

"Alright," she did not even know why she was answering.

There were no more words. The smile disappeared and the eyes shut again. One of the small screens at the side of the capsule suddenly gave out red letters and numbers.

She screamed to the inn for a doctor, as she pulled off her obi, and tied the cloth around his left arm, trying to stop the bleeding. "The wheelbarrow! Somebody get it, please!" she shouted again. Not the best way to transport anybody close to death, but he did not seem to have head or neck injuries, and there was no other way she could think of just then.

Two other women came from the inn, a man following along with the wheelbarrow. One of them shrieked when she saw the injuries. "What happened? Who is he?"

"We'll ask questions later. First we have to help him!" Yukino answered, as she began loosening the capsule harnesses.

They brought the injured man to one of the empty rooms on the first floor. Yukino took it upon herself to unbutton the man's uniform. As hot water and cloths came from her friends, she cleaned and patched what she could of the many wounds and bullet holes she found. Still, the man was getting worse, turning paler than he already was.

The doctor arrived in time, armed with an extra bag of blood and other surgical tools. He thanked Yukino and her friends for doing what they could for the man, which helped a lot to keep him alive until that time. Then the doctor told everyone except Yukino to leave the room, while he checked the man over.

He checked pulse, breathing, eyes, head, the injuries. Then he stood up, and shook his head. "I'm sorry. He has lost too much blood, and the injuries are great. We can keep him alive like this until tomorrow. But for him to survive, we have to mechanize him."

"No," she quickly and sternly said. Dispose of his body, and just take his brain and soul? Turn him into one of those large, bulky robots? No. "Is there no other option?"

"Selective mechanization, if you are agreeable," the doctor said. "It's almost a lost art, but I think I know a surgeon who still does it."

"What is that?"

He pointed to his left arm. "We can amputate the left arm, and replace it with a mechanical one. We can convert the most severely fractured of the ribs to implants. I don't know about his internal organs yet, but if necessary, any of those may be replaced, too. The rest of him stays the same. It requires regular maintenance, more than regular mechanical samurai require."

Yukino looked from the doctor, to the unconscious man. It was, indeed, a better option. "How much?"

"Definitely, much less than being completely mechanized. But it is still rather expensive."

She looked at him again. She remembered that weak but handsome smile. She took a deep breath. "Do it, sensei."

The doctor looked at her with wide eyes. "YOU will pay for it?" The jaws of the headmaster and the rest of the girls behind the door collectively dropped.

She thought about it, and gulped. "Yes, sensei."

The doctor nodded. "I'll complete my evaluations, do the amputation already, and contact my associate tonight. The operation will be done tomorrow."

Thus, Yukino left the room, to be met by the rest of the women of the house.

The headmaster spoke for the assembled group, quite sternly. "You don't know this man! His background, his connections, nothing! What if he turns and takes advantage of you?"

Yukino looked back into the room, and answered with a lowered head. "I know I'm taking a big chance, but I know he's a good man. I can feel it."

"He might leave without even thanking you."

"Then, so be it. But my conscience is clear."

The headmaster sighed. "All expenses will be taken from your earnings. It's only fair; you brought him in. Are we clear?"

She said yes.

She was not sure why she did it, really. Maybe she felt the duty of a human being to another. Maybe she felt sorry for him. Maybe she wanted to know this quietly brave man with the neat uniform. For that to happen, he had to stay alive.

The doctor took out the bullets and the badly injured left arm. His associate arrived with a cartload of tools the next day, and did what he needed to do. There was no wonder why this selective mechanization had become a lost art: it required less materials, but it needed more technical skill.

For her part, Yukino spent the day selling off her newest kimono. It was the only thing of enough value she currently had, to make a downpayment on the procedures. But when they were done, Yukino knew she had made the right choice. It was still him, the man she found by the river, just with a metal arm. If he used to be a pilot, he would be smart enough to learn how to use the new hand.

But she was worried. She had not asked him if he wanted this. Who was she to decide his fate? What if he did not want to be mechanized that way? What if he hated it?

His eyes finally opened again. He looked around the room, finally meeting her gaze. "Hey. We meet again."

"Hey, yourself," she answered with a sad smile.

"Shichiroji, first lieutenant, first unit, protecting Ninomaru castle. At least, I was."

"Yukino, junior geisha, this is the Hotaruya. Pleased to meet you, o-samurai-sama."

"Pleasure is all mine, pretty lady," he replied. He looked down at the mechanized left arm. "I'm not sure what you did, but thanks."

She breathed a huge sigh of relief. "You're not angry?"

He laughed weakly. "Why should I? I'm still alive, aren't I?"

But she saw him starting to fade out on her again. "It's alright, Shichiroji-sama, take your rest. I'll be around."

He had his eyes closed again before a reply came, but he slept with an unusual smile on his face.

…………………………

Yukino's hunch had been right, so far. Everybody agreed that her ward was a nice man, kind and cheerful. He told them stories from the warfront, sitting up in bed, leaned on the wall. He got to know all the maikos and geishas. He did not ask for more help than necessary. He did not bother the headmaster. He did not complain about his new mechanical arm, although it did give him trouble.

That is also where Yukino's trouble began.

Learning to use the new arm was rather difficult. Shichiroji still had problems making the hand do what he wanted it to do. Sometimes it gripped things too hard and broke teacups, or gripped things too loosely and dropped teapots. Then there were times when all the fingers suddenly jittered, making him drop a whole tray – just like this morning.

He once tried to clean the doors, but he tore off too much of the paper screening. He once helped to mop the floors, but could not wring the rags properly, thus the floors turned out too wet. Everybody knew that he wanted to help, and everyone gave him a chance. But he was getting to be nuisance to everybody, even if he did not mean to be. Poor Yukino had to take his side, too many times already.

The problem had to be addressed. The headmaster did so that afternoon. She frowned at Yukino and her ward, as they sat across the table from her.

"Too weak to be a guard, too destructive to be a cook, too useless to be a handyman," the headmaster shook her head. "This is my final word on this matter. If Shichiroji does not find anything to do here within one week, out he goes."

"But, ma'am!" Yukino exclaimed, then quickly bowed her head and remembered her place.

The headmaster folded her arms over her chest. "He's well enough now to take care of himself without us. I will not have him using up any more of your earnings, Yukino."

Yukino looked up again. "But it's alright, headmaster---"

The man raised his normal right hand. "She is right, Yukino. I have to earn my keep, and to pay you back." He shrugged. "I'll learn how to do your dances, play the shamisen, sing a bit. That should keep me away from the dishes."

Her eyes widened. It took her a few months to master the shamisen enough to play before an audience, and a year before dancing well enough to join the festival presentation. She had not heard him sing, although he whistled quite well. Besides all that, the man was a samurai, and he should not be subjected to the humiliation of entertaining others! "You don't have to do this, Shichiroji-sama!" she pleaded.

"A samurai has to keep his word," he smiled back at her. "Even if he can't keep his left arm." He faced the headmaster. "One week it is. If I manage to do it, can I hang around here and keep bothering her?"

The headmaster chuckled a bit, and looked at the half-blushing geisha. "Yes, and we will pay you for your services."

"It's a deal."

…………………………………

Hotaruya Firefly House. It's the inn where we first find the love team in the series. Since it's shorter I use that. Shamisen 3-string guitar-like instrument that you see Roji-san play in episode 7. When I remember or find what 'headmaster' is really supposed to be, I'll use it. (sigh)

I do agree about using the character the way you see him. However, I come from the Rurouni Kenshin section, which does not show mercy on those who don't at least try to get the characters right. It was good training. Thus, my concern that I'm not getting Roji-san right.

This comes from a hodgepodge of initial influences, including Ichise's prosthetic problems in Texhnolyze (if you hear about those 4 phases and other jargon after a while, you know where I got my concepts) and Sanosuke and Megumi's relationship in RK. Major thanks also Fauna-chan and the people at the S7 LJ community for helping me brainstorm. Oh, yeah. This means "Jiro Came to Town" is on hold again. (sigh) Thanks for reading, and I hope you come back. Comments and suggestions really welcome.


	2. shamisen

Hiya and thanks for coming back. Hopefully you guys will get individual responses out of me. If I can't, I'll just reply here, I'll just find a way to make them less conspicuous, hehe. S7 ain't mine, Yukino owns Roji-san. Now we are clear on that, here's the next chapter.

The shamisen is that thing Roji-san was playing when he was having that conversation with Kanbei-sama. It's compared to a banjo sometimes. Much of the plucked sounds in the opening of "Fuhen" (the ending song) is from a shamisen.

………………………………

She knew it was not her place, but enough was too much. She had to do it. She had to yell. "SHICHIROJI!" No titles. She was mad.

"Yes, yes…..I know…."

"That's the SECOND one! MY second one!"

"I'm…sorry?"

She slapped her forehead, and sighed deeply. All three strings of her shamisen were now split in two. Holding up the shamisen was her ward, rubbing the back of his head. "I have to buy new strings! I just got paid!" she shouted.

"I promise to pay for it…..when I get paid…."

"HOW? Tell me! At this rate, you won't get paid at all!" She felt the tears forming at the sides of her eyes.

He saw them as well. He lowered the shamisen and moved closer to her. He smiled just slightly, and placed his right normal hand on her cheek. "There, there. Beautiful women shouldn't cry."

She tried to swipe away the hand, but it was stronger than she expected. She felt a teardrop escape and wet the hand that still held her cheek.

"Stop worrying. I'm not going anywhere." He looked away and sighed. "There's nowhere else to go, anyhow."

She forcefully lowered the hand on her cheek, and just looked at him, for an explanation.

"I've been asking," he said. "Our side has been wiped out. I knew some time ago with Kanbei-sama, but now it's official. We lost."

She had heard about that from the others as well, but she did not know that he was from the losing side of the war. She was not sure if he already knew, but there had been announcements around the district that enemies of the new government had to be sifted out.

He was one of those to be sifted out, surrendered to the authorities.

"That's why I have nowhere else to go, but here. And I have no choice but to work here. So I'll learn this. Don't worry." His face was filled with quiet sadness.

She looked at him again, head to foot.

"Don't. Worry. Yukino." He smiled at her again. "I can take care of myself. Now, then. Is there another spare shamisen we can use?"

"That WAS the spare shamisen you just ruined!" she smiled in spite of herself as she screamed at him.

"Oh, dear, so sorry." He rubbed his head again.

"OOOOOOOH! Days like this. You make me so…..so…."

"Glad you know me?" he grinned.

"Aaaiiiiya!"

She could not take it anymore. She stood up, and walked out.

She shook her head at him, with a smile.

…………………………….

Who Yukino was with the man with the unusual three-way ponytail, was not who Yukino was with her customers. At night, she was a completely different person: sultry, alluring, seductive. No one would recognize the snow flower of the night as the woman who had a shouting match with a blonde man that morning.

She let him see everything she hid from everyone else, this man she saved. He would see from any deception on her part. She felt it. However, he would keep her self a secret from the world, a secret he shared with the other young women in the inn. That secured his position there, unconsciously, in everyone's minds.

All the same, she kept him hidden from their customers. Her friends considered this precaution on her part, for his sake, because he was indeed one of those wanted to surrender to the authorities. There was more to it, though. If she saw him, she remembered her true self, the self she would not dare show to customers. Out of sight, out of mind. Thus, she pushed him into their largest closet where the best kimono were kept, and made him stay there. He just shrugged as she closed the closet door on him.

There was one customer she particularly favored, and wanted to please. He was perfect, period. Relatively young, rich, considerate, generous, handsome. What else could an average, just-getting-known geisha want?

Maybe, for him to be her patron.

It was to this end that she was particularly nice to this customer. She did as she was taught and served all the guests, laughed and joked with them. She made sure all the sake cups were always filled, and that everyone was always happy. But she paid more attention to this customer, talked with him more often, and served him more.

And it seemed her efforts were somewhat paying off. As the party ended, he asked if he could spend a little more time with her, alone. She was more than willing to oblige. She had prepared a new piece on her shamisen, just for that purpose. that both her shamisen were broken now, she had to borrow her friend's for the purpose.

She sat in front of the customer, and began to strum the borrowed shamisen, with well-trained ease. She kept giving the man knowing glances that hopefully showed her interest in him somewhat beyond the usual professional arrangements.

She saw him gulp down a whole cup of sake. Then he stood and walked to where she was. It was difficult to keep the excitement from showing in her face.

But his next words stopped her. "I've been waiting to see you in that beautiful kimono, you know," he crooned over her ear.

"What….what kimono?" she evaded. She tried to keep the cold sweat from forming on her white makeup.

Of course she knew what kimono he was asking about. It was the kimono she sold, the downpayment for Shichiroji's arm. Now she had to keep her benefactor from knowing it.

"I distinctly recall sending a messenger to the Hotaruya, with a new silk kimono," the customer reminded her.

"Did you?" she turned her head to show her face to full advantage. "But no messenger came from your place." She pouted for good measure.

"No, no, my dear, I remember. The messenger returned to me saying someone from this inn received the package."

She kept silent, her head racing, thinking of what to say next.

"Oh, don't worry your head about it, my dear," the customer said kindly. "I suppose you're just saving for a special occasion."

"Yes…..YES! Exactly!" She thanked the heavens for that quick explanation.

"I understand." The man shook his head and chuckled. "You women have your ways. But on the day you will wear that kimono," he came closer and savored her perfume, "do let me know."

They had more music, sake, and conversation after that. He told about the problems in managing an old business just after the war had ruined most of it. He even showed dismay at the searches for the war's defeated. It was his opinion that they should be given amnesty if they want it, but they should be left alone if they did not. Her opinion exactly, and she told him so. But he added that he agreed to the execution of the defeated leaders of the war. They might cause trouble after some time by raising another army.

This she was afraid of hearing. From conversations with her ward, she had learned that while he was not a key person in the war, he knew enough about its planning, and enough of its former leaders, to be dangerous to the current heads of state. Even if he was hidden in the closet, she had to forcefully think about him. And, even if she liked the customer, she was glad when it was time for him to finally leave.

She demurely closed the screen door as the customer left…..then quite slumped onto the tea table. "That was CLOSE!" She arranged the mats and cleared the table, and left the room, completely tired. It was already two hours past midnight.

A gentle hand held her shoulder as she turned the corner. "Hey," he greeted in the darkness.

She sighed. "Hey."

Shichiroji folded his hands over his chest, and frowned at her with dancing eyes. "You know, my pretty girl, selling off the kimono from your most generous client, wasn't very smart."

Yukino tossed her head at him. "Would you rather have died instead?"

He shrugged. "Just admit it. It WAS stupid."

"Why you ungrateful---" But as she readied her hand to slap him, she saw him chuckling as quietly as he could. First she was mad, then she was annoyed, then, then…..she found herself chuckling as well. "Yes, it was stupid." They laughed together in the darkness for a few more seconds.

"Come, I'll show you something."

She followed without knowing why, as he led into her room. He made her sit on the floor, then he took a case from the corner.

"But that's--"

He opened it, and took out the shamisen they fought about that morning. It was now intact, with three new strings. She opened her mouth to complain, but he raised an open hand. He sat down, and readied to play.

It was the first training piece that he played, up and down the scales, using all the strings. Slowly, deliberately, plucking with the right hand, pressing each string with the mechanical hand. Then he played the second practice piece, jumping from one string to the other. Then the third, jumping the notes and scales. He did them all…..with mistakes, indeed, but quite well for a rookie. Yukino never noticed how her mouth remained opened, just looking at him, playing, struggling, trying.

He ended with one of the simpler songs a geisha had to master for parties. A little song about finding dreams, losing them, and finding new ones.

He returned the shamisen to the case, and returned the case to the corner.

"Where did you…..when did you….how did you…." She fumbled and kept gawking.

"I have a deal with Mayo to help her with the groceries in exchange for the strings. I practiced in the closet, since you told me to keep out of sight. That's all." Just then the machinery started buzzing and the fingers of the mechanical hand began to jitter wildly. "Aiyaya….stop….stop!" He held the forearm and kept tapping and shaking it. He looked at her and teased. "Now, look, see what happened! You made me practice so hard!"

She did not know what to think, to feel, to say. All she knew right then was this: she would never regret selling that kimono, getting money for the operation, saving his life.

She would never regret it.

………………………………

Who the heck is Mayo? I don't know yet, quite frankly. Not a love interest that's for certain. Also, if you're expecting a grand adventure, that's not what I'm driving at, sorry. Thanks for reading and I hope you come back.


	3. dance

Hi and thanks for coming back. I don't own S7, I'd like to own the series on DVD, Yukino owns Roji-san. Parental guidance necessary for this chapter. Nothing explicit, but now I'm going beyond just mushy. This thing is getting more serious than I expected it to be.

I don't claim to know much about Japanese dances, so please forgive my mistakes. Here we go.

………………………

"Yo." He bowed to the headmaster and Yukino as he greeted, half leaning on a staff. "May I stay and watch? Nothing to do right now."

The headmaster was seated close to one of the walls, as she watched Yukino practice her dances. The headmaster said yes, so Shichiroji walked to a corner near a window, and sat. The headmaster plucked the shamisen again, and Yukino continued with her practice.

As was most of the dances a geisha had to master, the one she was practicing was slow and deliberate, each slight movement delivering a multitude of meaning. Each gesture had to be done correctly, precisely, or it might send the wrong message.

But all of the messages of the dance were lost. He was longer watching her, but looking out the window. Every once in a while, he let out a little sigh, and looked down at his left arm.

The headmaster called the ending of the practice for the morning, and left them in the room. Yukino walked closer to her ward near the window.

"Shichiroji? Yukino to Shichiroji, over? Shichiroji, please respond…."

Finally he looked at her. "Sorry. I was just……thinking."

She looked out the window as well. "About what?"

He gave her a sad smile. "It's nice how the sky looks now, doesn't it? Blue, no smoke….no cruisers…no mecha samurai…."

"Well, yes……"

"But what happens to me now?" he kept looking out. "I'm a pilot by training, a samurai by rearing. Now, I'm neither."

Oh, that's right, Yukino realized. Everything he used to be was now gone. All he had left was what he had now. Even his present was currently uncertain.

He was still too weak to find work elsewhere. He was still considered an enemy of the new government. As a pilot his services were no longer needed. Being neither completely human nor completely mechanized, he would be accepted by neither group of samurai in the future. Both he and she were not sorry he was still living….but the consequences were starting to appear.

She wanted him to forget that for a short while, though. She took up his hand.

"I'd like to practice one dance that I haven't done for a while. I need your help for that."

He raised an eyebrow, but stood up. "I'll try my best."

She walked to the center of the large room, and assumed the starting position of the new dance. He stepped forward, but she held out a hand. "No, stay there."

She danced a little bit of that routine she was practicing when he arrived. It was the dance equivalent of a woman trying to attract a man's attention. The implication was obviously not lost on the man near her, because she saw him smirking slightly.

Then, she stepped up to him, with a slight twist to the hips. "Did you see how I stepped closer? Can you do that, too?"

He imitated her last step exactly.

"Now step closer, and try repeating the last few things I did."

He bit his lip, and slowly but surely copied her last few moves 80 percent correctly.

The last step involved presenting a hand to the partner, and he did this with grace. He was a little surprised when she placed her hand inside his, and stepped even closer to him. She could now feel his warm breath just a little over her cheeks.

"Now just do what I do."

Hold hands. Right foot forward. Right foot back. She led, he followed. Change hands. Left foot forward. Left foot back. They were falling into sync. Bow to each other. Face each other. She looked at him, and found him more handsome at a distance of 3 inches away. He saw her looking at him, and smiled a bit. Hold hands. Right foot, left foot. Turn around.

After a while, she did not have to prompt him about the next movement. It was as if their minds were now one, and he could predict the next move from just seeing her face, feeling her gestures. She went through each step, gesture, and movement, smoothly, naturally. As she looked at his handsome face, she felt like she could do this dance forever with him.

It felt perfect. It felt like being in love. It actually even felt like, making love.

It was terrifying, but she did not want it to end, not yet….not yet….she had never danced this piece this well before, this naturally. But her brain and her body were leading to the last steps, and it was over before she wanted it to end.

Although, she now understood why it was called what it was……

"Beautiful thing," her partner noted. "What is it called?"

She felt a deep blush rise to her cheeks. "It's called, the Dance of the Lovers."

He smirked. "Interesting. Are we?"

She was struck dumb by the bluntness. She stepped back a foot away and tossed her head. "Don't be too cocky."

He just grinned.

"Anyway," she turned her back on him, "I've just given you a dance routine. You can use it tomorrow night at the presentation for the guests. That should make sure you get to stay here for good."

"Um, thanks, I suppose…"

"You wanted a life, right?" she asked, as she walked to the door. "I'm giving you a life right here. If you want it."

She closed the door hastily behind her. She could not believe she said all that, did all that.

………………………………

Yukino did not see him for the rest of that afternoon, as she had errands to run before going to work that evening. It was alright; Shichiroji would be fine on his own, she told herself.

Still, her mind kept going back to the dance that morning between them. It was a surreal experience, one she had never before felt in her several years of being a geisha. How could she believe what her heart felt just then? It had only been three weeks. She did not know him.

If truth were told, then yes, she knew about being in love, and making love. It was not a requirement of the profession, but she had allowed herself to engage in it, a few times before. But it was incredibly unusual, how she felt while the dance proceeded. Only their hands touched and their eyes met, but still……it felt like she had given him her heart and soul. That was more than she ever gave to others who had seen more of her than he did.

But she can't feel like that about him, she can't! If she wanted a patron, she had to have enough love saved up for that patron. She did not want to be artificial to the man who would be willing to spend for her.

And yet……and yet……his blue eyes bore into her heart, and made it hurt.

What in the world was it about that man?

Her musing was not over when she finished applying her makeup, and when the hairdresser finished putting on her wig for the evening. She made a conscious decision to set aside those thoughts of that dance, to get to work.

But as she came down, she found Shichiroji and one of the older maikos at the foot of the stairs. She found her ward's arms all over the young woman's, while she cried and cried. "Stop, Mayo-san, stop!" he begged. "Tell me what happened." If the young woman were not completely distraught, she would have been very mad at him just then.

Mayo looked up as the tears kept flowing. "He……he……did this!" and she raised her sleeves to show red welts across her arms. Yukino saw it, and gasped. "He turned over the table, and broke all the plates and cups!"

She ran down the stairs as quickly as she could and went beside them. "Who!" Yukino finally demanded. "Who did this to you, Mayo?"

"He did!" Mayo's head dug deeper into Shichiroji's clothes. "He did!"

"Who?"

"Stop it already, Yukino, I think I know who," Shichiroji answered with a deep frown. "If you don't mind, I'll take Mayo up to her room."

She raised her nose at him. "Doesn't matter to me."

He accompanied the sobbing girl up the stairs. She walked away, and went to work.

Her ward did not appear to her that whole evening, which was a relief. She threw her whole heart into entertaining the guests of her favorite customer. She sighed at how none of them seemed to notice her efforts. They just kept laughing among themselves, treating her like one of the furniture.

But she did catch snippets of conversation among the men, slowly getting drunk.

"You shouldn't have done that, you know, Kinomoto!" one of her customer's guests chided. "Such a pretty little girl, too!"

"It was her fault!" Kinomoto drawled back. "The tea was awful, and she wouldn't let me touch her!"

"Do you do this to all the women?" another guest teased.

"A woman has to know her place," the customer gulped down another cup. "And she will know it, even if I have to hurt her."

Laughter among the men rang loud and clear. Yukino kept her hands together over her lap, to keep them from shaking.

Yukino and the customer spent time again apart from the guests, alone in a room. She let him smell her clothes and her hair, and touch her kimono. She was feeling indulgent. She was feeling desperate. She wanted to believe that she had enough of herself to give to him. She wanted to believe that what she had just heard was not true.

Her mind kept going back to that dance, that dance that felt so natural and so perfect. No matter how much she tried to push it back, she kept comparing this moment with her favorite customer with that moment with her……her…….what in the world was he?

When Kinomoto left, she calmed her confused head by visiting Mayo in her room and asking how she was. Someone had dressed her wounds already, and placed bandages on them.

"Shichiroji did this, yes?" she asked about the bandages.

Mayo nodded. Her hair was now loose over her shoulders, her makeup all washed away. "He was very nice. He told me silly jokes, and made me laugh. He listened to me. He promised to make sure it would not happen again. And I believe him."

She drew her closer, and gave the young woman a hug. "So do I, so do I."

Yukino returned to her room, much more confused than when she woke up that morning. She had felt like an incredible, beautiful woman, for the very first time in her life that morning…but with the man who could not possibly be right for her. If only he weren't so nice, so sweet, so understanding, so alone, so handsome…

She heard a few taps on her door. "Your generous client's a dangerous guy, and you know it," he called out through the screen door.

"Stop poking your nose in my affairs, you meddler!" she shouted back.

"I've been around girls like you before, you know! I know when you girls are just forcing the issue."

"Oh, really? So what?"

"I'm just saying. Don't force the issue with that guy so much. Now, good night." The thump-thump of the staff faded deeper into the hallway.

Really, the man was exasperating!

……………………………………

I'm really sorry about the replies I've been sending you people. I'll get the hang of the new reply feature eventually and send more coherent replies. Also, some of you might not realize that I haven't heard the English version of S7 yet! I come from the Animax distribution, and I've seen the show several times all the way through since last May.


	4. fireflies

Hiya. The usual disclaimers. By the way, I know everybody calls him Shichi-san, but the way I call him is easier on the tongue, and makes it easier for silly fangirls like me to go……awwww…...Roji-san……my hero……(just kidding).

We continue with my study in using the masculine and feminine pronouns, hehe. Parental guidance required for this chapter.

………………………………

It was already an established tradition at the Hotaruya. At the end of each week, the resident geishas and maikos of the inn held a presentation for all the guests. It included dances and instrument playing. This was also when new additions, such as new maikos or promoted geisha, were introduced to the public.

The regulars of the inn began the presentation as the younger members served the food to the assembled guests. Yukino ended this segment with the slow dance routine that her ward saw her practice the day before. As this had been seen before by several of the regular customers, it only received a decent amount of clapping. She bowed kindly, and sighed.

It was now time.

"Gentlemen, as an added treat to you this evening, we would like to introduce our new resident jester," Yukino announced.

The guests looked at each other and whispered among themselves. The Hotaruya specialized in female geisha, unlike others who also trained male performance arts masters and entertainers. The inn got its houkan and taikomochi from elsewhere.

"Are you kidding us? We're here for the girls, the girls!" one of the men chided.

"Ah, so am I, so am I!" the new jester sauntered in behind the guests with a flourish and a bow. "Why did you think I got this job? So I can be with these girls all the time!"

This sent the guests laughing, as the jester approached center stage. His hair was hidden in a bright bandana. He wore absurdly bright loose clothes and white gloves. However he did not wear any makeup.

"Gentlemen, our new jester! His name is…….um………what SHALL I call you, anyhow?" Yukino asked him, half sincerely nervous.

Just then a shriek came from offstage. "Momotaro-san!"

The jester cowered behind Yukino.

"You broke all the plates again!" Mayo marched up to center stage with a scowl and a broom.

"I'm really sorry!" He kept cowering behind the geisha, who kept pushing him away, while Mayo kept trying to hit him with a broom.

"So that's your name?" Yukino asked, facing the audience. "Why in the world are you called 'Momotaro'?"

"Well, I fell off a peach tree and onto the roof of the inn…." He began explaining, a reason so weird the guests laughed starting at the mention of the tree. The rest of it was drowned out.

Yukino smirked. "Well, then, peach boy, could you prove your worth to us while we serve these guests their tea?"

"But, the plates!" Mayo complained.

"He'll pay for it, oh, yes, he will!" Yukino said as she presented the shamisen to Shichiroji, "From the tips of these gracious guests after the show!"

"You mean….," he sulked.

"No dinner for you," she tossed her head.

"Fine," he sulked again, took up the shamisen and sat down over a mat. "My first song then is about my lost dinner….."

All this, of course, got the pity of the guests to the new jester, and they promised to tip well at the end of the presentation. Besides, they were not disappointed by the jester's playing of the shamisen. He was quite good for a new entertainer, and had a good warbling voice to match the somber tones from the shamisen. He even received a good round of applause after the piece.

He bowed profusely. "You are too kind." He stood and returned the shamisen to Mayo. "Now, for our next presentation, the beautiful Yukino and I shall perform for you a dance you wished you could do to any of the pretty girls here…."

Yukino glared at him, obvious to both Shichiroji and to all the guests. They had agreed backstage. NOT that one. Not in front of an audience! They had decided on another, happier routine that morning.

The jester bowed and announced the piece. "The dance of the fireflies."

She breathed a sigh of relief…then she paused. There was no such dance in her repertoire. All the same, she walked up to him, and bowed to the audience.

"What are you driving at?" she hissed at him as they bowed together.

"I just want to tell you something," he replied, as they raised their heads. He made the cue for the music to start.

The music was for the dance they practiced that morning, a harvest dance, but the starting position he assumed was for the lovers dance. Not wanting to let the audience know there was something wrong, Yukino just followed and assumed the same position. He smiled gratefully, then proceeded with the initial steps, gaining the partner's attraction.

But the steps were threatening to get out of sync with the music, so she replied with the harvest dance's first movements. I will not let him ruin this dance, she kept telling herself. The way she could not possibly let him ruin her future.

He kept in time with the harvest dance but maintained the steps from the other, more intimate routine. He moved in closer, ever closer, as she kept trying to move away. His eyes kept looking earnestly at her, begging her to pay attention.

She finally did, and she thought she understood what he had to say.

_Let me pay you back. Please. Trust me. Believe in me. I can protect you. I can keep you safe. I can even love you. _

As the final stanzas of the dance began to be played, she had to answer.

_I have to think of the future, and so do you. What will life be like with us together? It's not that I don't trust you. But there are too many uncertainties, too many doubts. _

He more or less understood, and replied with his eyes.

_I don't have the answers, either. But I promise to always stand beside you and protect you, whatever happens. Take it or leave it. That's all I can promise. I will do it until my last breath. _

And the music stopped. The two looked at each other knowingly, bowed to each other, then to the audience.

A long round of applause came from the guests. "Splendid! Splendid!" one guest shouted. "Do it at the festival!" another begged.

The completed dance became an unusual fusion of the one they practiced yesterday morning, and the one they practiced that morning. It was filled with the untold love of the first, combined with the quick movements of the second. It gave the impression of two fireflies, indeed, a male and a female, fluttering around the dangerous flame of a candle. A flame that gave them light and brought them together, but also threatened to destroy them.

"And that concludes our show for this evening. Thank you for your kind attention."

All the performers bowed to the guests, to more applause.

Yukino stopped him backstage. "Say you did not mean it."

Shichiroji did not waste a moment. "I mean it."

"You're out of your mind."

"You're afraid of love."

"There's more to life than love!"

"Money does not buy love."

"I've just known you three weeks!"

"I can wait. But I'm not going anywhere."

"You're a player."

"You're a coward."

SLAP!

Yukino marched up to her room to retouch her makeup and fix her hair.

…………………………………

That slap hurt her as much or more than it hurt him. I'm not a coward, I'm not a coward! She kept reminding herself. But she also knew that he was right. She was a coward. If she were not a coward, she would have gone to him and apologized. But she did not.

She found it hard, impossible, to talk to him the next day. The rest of the Hotaruya congratulated him on being allowed to stay on as an entertainer in training – because, of course, he had to learn the rest of the skills required. She, on the other hand, kept avoiding him. He was just a fool who had fallen for his savior. It was an infatuation. When he gets really well and leaves the inn, he would find another girl, and she would be forgotten. He would soon find a replacement for her.

He knew his way around women. He knew what pleased them, what riled them. But he had not taken advantage of that knowledge, over the three weeks he had been there. He did not flirt with any of the girls, just teased them without malice every once in a while. Either he was a VERY good chameleon, or he was a gentleman with a sense of humor. And yet, that dance was real, the gestures were real, the thoughts and feelings were real. The emotions expressed were beyond infatuation, she saw it in his eyes.

She had to admit, though, that she had liked something inexplicable since she first found him. Confidence? Self-assurance? Coolness? Probably. The will to live? The will to take what life sends along and use it to full advantage? Maybe. She was not sure. Surely it must be an infatuation. Surely it must be just emotional attachment. Like a girl who adores the pet rabbit she had nursed back to health.

In any case, she felt something new with this unusual relationship, and so did he. Both of them did not know what, but it drew them together. Like fireflies around a flame.

The day turned to night, and one of the maikos announced with some concern, the arrival of Yukino's best client. Alone. Yukino went down to meet him in one of the rooms, nonetheless.

"I did not get a chance to congratulate you on a beautiful performance yesterday," Kinomoto smiled at her. She bowed her thanks.

The man allowed her to serve the sake and return to her seat before he spoke again.

"I have spoken with your headmaster. How would you like to have a patron?"

She almost dropped the sake cup she held. The time had come! A patron! A handsome, generous man will be her patron!

However, the sight of Mayo's sore arms and the words from Shichiroji's warnings resurfaced.

"Does the idea please you?" the man prodded her out of her thoughts.

"Yes, it does, thank you," she said with a trained voice as she bowed.

"Good, good!" He smiled a half-frightening smile.

He stepped out for a moment, told a man outside to leave him, then returned with a large lacquer box. The box used for kimono. "This is in honor of your performance yesterday, and our future relationship."

She accepted the box and bowed until her nose reached the floor, to show her deep appreciation. The box itself already looked expensive.

"Try it on, my dear lady."

"I will, at next week's performance, I hope you would come," she promised.

"No, no, my dear. I want to see it on you right now."

"But, Kinomoto-san, kimono are hard to wear, and I must take better care of this one."

"You do not understand." The man was raising the tone of his voice. "You made me wait so long to see the first one. I want to see this one on you right now." The man moved to her side of the table.

Yukino began to get nervous. "If that is your wish. I will send for the woman who assists me."

"Why don't you let me assist you?" Kinomoto moved to her back, and began to quickly undo the obi.

It was too fast for comfort. "NO."

"No woman should go against my wishes, dear lady," the man said with ice, as he continued to loosen the obi.

"I will be the first woman to refuse you, then," she said, shaking terribly.

Kinomoto had the obi free. He twisted her around to face him, and opened up the topmost layer of the kimono.

"NO. Please, Kinomoto-san."

"You will not make me wait again, snow flower." He took off and pulled down the top layer with too much strength. She realized with fright that he was used to doing this, probably to women of lower class than she. But he knew what he was doing and she knew what it would lead to. She did not want it. Not with him. Not like this. Not this way.

Things were getting incredibly out of hand, out of her control. She did not want to do this, no, no! She had to call out, shout out. And there was only one name she could think of just then. "—ROJI!"

Her mouth was immediately covered by the man on top of her, as she continued to fidget. "So that's the real name of the peach boy? He's an entertainer, too, so he should know about things like this, right?"

Yes, but this was not part of the bargain. The rest of her body was shutting down, numb with fright. She could not gain the strength to resist Kinomoto's powerful hands, as he quickly loosened her kimono and began revealing the layers of undergarment beneath. Shichiroji! She begged in her head. Hurry up, you idiot! Please!

"I want to know you, to feel you entirely," the man crooned with a sinister voice as he undid the laces of the final layer of clothes, the one next to her skin. "I want to know what I will be getting, before I become your patron."

Not like this, no! She mustered enough strength and bit the hand over her mouth. "—ROJI!" she called again.

"Stop that shouting!" Kinomoto raised a hand to strike her.

But the hand was held firmly and suddenly at midair. The arm was then twisted behind the man's back, and the rest of him was pushed to the floor from behind.

"I don't care who you are, or how rich you are," the rich baritone of her ward came with tremendous force. "You will treat our ladies with respect, or I will kick you out."

"Why you--" and the man turned over.

He quickly whisked out his sword and swiped at Shichiroji's neck. But this was blocked by his left mechanical arm, as he twisted and held the man down again with the right hand over the man's neck.

"Impossible!" Kinomoto choked from the grip. "What are you made of?"

"Mostly flesh and blood, and some steel," Shichiroji answered with a grin. Both of his hands were gloved, so it was not obvious which hand was no longer human.

"Maybe this will settle you!" Kinomoto fired a pistol at his abdomen and another at his left arm, as Yukino screamed again.

"You and the snow flower are the same," he smirked. "You take me too lightly." He blocked both bullets with the left arm, and finally knocked out Kinomoto with it.

With her attacker safely unconscious on the floor, Yukino covered up and looked up at her ward. It was now only sinking in that she had been saved in time. She wrapped herself around him, and let a few tears flow. She did not exactly care now if he felt a little of her body against his. He leaned on her shoulder, felt the contours of her back with his right hand, and held her close. He did this gently, tenderly.

Something was not right, though. He was panting more than he should, and she heard crackles from the half-useless metal arm beside her. "Are you alright?" was all she could think of to say.

He released her, coughed and held the side of his torso. "Maybe we can call back that surgeon fellow." He pulled off the glove over his left arm, and found the mechanical arm chipped in several places, with the wires inside sparking. "I've finally returned the favor."

She smiled back through the tears. "Now, I have to pay you back."

But any more conversation was cut short by the appearance of several other men into the room, concerned by the noises and shouting. The first to arrive stepped back a few steps as he found the man beside Yukino. He blinked a few times, then pointed.

"First lieutenant Shichiroji! I have found you!"

……………………………

For those who barely understood why Roji-san is generally called "Momotaro": There is a Japanese folk tale about a boy that came out of a large peach, who is then named Momotaro ("momo" is peach). The boy grows up to be strong samurai and a help to the community. Since the circumstances are quite similar, this prompted Heihachi to say it's much like the Momotaro story, and the nickname stuck among the seven and the farmers. But I figured that he had been called by that nickname even earlier, considering both his and Yukino's reactions when it was pointed out.

The next chapter will be the last, alright? Two things I never see myself doing for S7: writing long stuff, and writing for Kirara and Katsushiro (since that's an often-explored territory already). Sorry also if these chapters are short, but I can't seem to make them any longer without dragging things. This is much like "Tenshi" in that it was started on a long-processed idea but typed up in a whirl of inspiration, thus it's a rush job and not my best work. Sorry, I liked making Tenshi even as a rush job, that's why I keep mentioning it. By the way, individual replies will be coming shortly. I really still prefer the old way. In general, thanks for reviewing. See ya!


	5. staying

Ladies and Gentlemen: this is where it ends. As usual, S7 ain't mine, Yukino owns Roji-san, I'd like to give Hei-san a big hug, I'd like to give Kyuzo-dono a girlfriend, I'd like Kirara to admit she really likes Katsu-noji after all. Once again, thanks a lot for indulging an incurable fan in her insanity. Katsushiro I liked but lost patience with, Heihachi I got shocked into liking so much, but from the beginning I've liked Shichiroji for just being there. Thanks a lot for reading, and I hope you liked it.

Here we go.

……………………………

"First lieutenant Shichiroji! I have found you!"

As if poor Yukino had not had enough excitement in one night to last her a week, a man suddenly appeared who actually knew her ward. Her head was whirling too much already to even consider the consequences of that arrival.

But the yellow-haired man beside her was smiling at the newcomer. "Kusano. I'm glad the war didn't get you." Then, without a useable arm to lean on, he allowed himself to fall sideways onto the tatami floor. He still held the side of his chest with the right hand.

The more practical side of the geisha took over, even as her emotions kept whirling and her head kept spinning. She pointed at the man. "You can talk to him later. The inn has vacant rooms, you can stay the night at my expense if necessary." She looked the others behind him. "The rest of you, hand that man over there to the authorities, tell Mayo to come here with hot water and bandages, and find the surgeon Kintaro at the north district. NOW, please!"

The men did not even dare question why a woman and a geisha was ordering them around. They just obeyed.

Yukino, meanwhile, tried to patch up the wound at the torso as best she could. "I suppose this is how you got so injured when I met you? You couldn't stop yourself from fighting for your friends, but found the enemy more than you could handle."

"Sorta like that," he grinned weakly.

"Idiot."

"Yeah." He took a few deep breaths, and closed his eyes. "See you after a while, Yukino."

"OH, NO you……" Not again!

He faded out on her.

Her head spun completely out of her control. As Mayo arrived with the hot water, Yukino's brain shut down.

………………………………

Too many things had happened in so short a time, more than she could sufficiently handle. Her eyes stayed open, but she never noticed Mayo's comings and goings. She never felt the surgeon arrive. She never heard what he said. She was not completely there when Mayo helped her up to her room to undress into her nightgown. She went to sleep without knowing it, woke up without knowing it either.

She did not want to relive those moments. Just letting the man she had placed her dreams on, just letting him undress her without resisting. Screaming for a man she did not know what she felt for. Seeing the man get hurt on her account. Seeing him again, the same way she had first seen him. Finding some person she did not know, who threatened to take him away from her. She wanted to forget, keep the thoughts locked away.

She was given breakfast, lunch, dinner. She was helped to bathe, helped to dress. She sat up, stood up, opened her mouth as they wanted her. She woke up when she was told, slept when she was told. But she saw nothing, remembered nothing. She was lost in a long, blank dream.

But one voice broke through the deep haze.

"Hey."

Her response was spontaneous. "Hey, yourself."

"Come back to us, Yukino. You're no fun like this."

She leaned on his shoulder. "I just want to keep dreaming……"

He patted her head. "Dreaming of what?"

She searched her blank darkness, and found... "Nothing."

"Kinda boring, don't you think? Come on, Yukino. I'm fine now, and so are you. Let's have tea together. It's a nice afternoon for some tea." With her head still on his shoulder, he wrapped an arm around her waist. "It will not happen again, I promise. Stop going back to that night, because it will never happen again. I'll get stronger, so you won't have to keep worrying about me. Alright, Yukino?"

Something about what he said made sense to her. She actually felt safe with that hand around her waist. Safe enough, to finally and truly, wake up from the blank dream. She looked at him, really looked at him, and smiled faintly.

"Shichiroji." She looked out the window, and found a clear sky and chirping birds. "What time is it?" she asked.

"It's 1 pm of Wednesday," he replied. He did not bother to explain what happened to Monday and Tuesday. He just showed her the arm, now completely fixed, and demonstrated how his hand opened and closed.

While the bullet did pass through the width of the mechanical arm to hit the torso, overall the internal damage to the arm was minimal. Wires were disconnected, but quickly replaced. It was harder to stop the bleeding, remove the bullet, and fix the damage to the chest. Yet even that was easily corrected, that same night. No extra parts needed to be added to him. By that Wednesday he was allowed to move around, if rather slowly.

She needed no explanations. She was just glad he was fine. She embraced him, and cried and cried. More than she had ever cried in her hard life. He hugged her back, nice and snug around her frame.

"I'm sorry for what I said, for what I did….." she said as she sniffed.

"It was quite understandable, really," he replied. "Don't worry about it."

No other words were said, and they just held each other quietly, with a silent understanding between them.

She could not believe it. This was what she was looking for, all those years. She had found it from a man she met in the most unusual of circumstances. "This sounds incredibly sentimental," she began, "but where have you been all my life?"

"The other half of the planet, where else?" he answered and chuckled.

"Your timing is awful," she laughed in return.

Mayo eventually came with tea and a happy hug for Yukino, then left the teapot and cups with them.

However, she returned after fifteen minutes. "Kusano-san is back to see you, Roji-sama," Mayo peeked through the door and said, using a nickname she began to use since that day she was attacked.

The man was back…..to take him away…the man was back. Yukino felt the room darken, disappear, again……

Shichiroji gave her a good shake. "No, no, Yukino. Stay with me. I need someone to serve tea."

The room settled back into place, and she nodded.

Shichiroji told Mayo to send the man in, but he was already standing behind the maiko. "Aiya, lieutenant, you were never good at handling physical injuries," Kusano tsked good-naturedly.

"Why do you think I chose to fly cruisers?" Shichiroji answered with a grin, and offered a seat at the tea table. "Slashing is Kanbei-sama's forte, not mine. Speaking of which…any news of Kanbei-sama?"

The man shook his head. "Maybe he's still in hiding. Don't worry. We all know he can take care of himself."

By this Yukino understood that Kusano was a comrade from the war, someone she did not have to worry about. True to her training, she sat quietly and served tea while the men talked about narrow escapes and staying alive. She still felt a bit weak, and not up to conversation, anyway. They laughed about the old days of the war, and grew sad talking about comrades who had died.

After about an hour of conversation, Kusano put the down his teacup and faced Shichiroji. "I do have a proposal, sir. I can ask the people who hired me, to hire you as well. It pays wages enough for an occasional night on the town, I promise you that."

"Hm." He rubbed his chin. "What would I have to do?"

"The current government needs more manpower to help control the populace," Kusano explained. "Settle petty disputes, stop minor violence, that kind of thing. In general, just keep the new peace at ground level. They're offering it even to the enemy, as long as they come peaceably and ask for amnesty."

"But, I'm a pilot……"

"They need your kind, too, sir. Air patrol, general checking of the holdings, seeing that nothing gets harmed. It's especially true now, with all the talk of rogue mecha samurai becoming bandits in the surrounding regions."

"Flying a cruiser?"

"Yes, sir, cruisers or kettles – although I am sure you will be placed in flying cruisers."

Yukino saw him starting to smile, probably at the prospect of flying again. She sighed. Who was she to stop him if he wanted to leave for a more exciting life?

But as he suddenly met her gaze, he stopped, and frowned.

He remained silent for a long while, as he shifted his eyes between Yukino and Kusano. He was weighing his options, it was clear in his face. He looked at Yukino for a long time. She bowed and tried not to meet his gaze. She was sure he had seen what she felt about it.

Shichiroji finally looked up, and faced his comrade. "Thank you kindly for the offer, Kusano, I really appreciate it," he said. "But as you said, I'm bad at getting injured. And I think, I've found my place in the world now."

"But, sir…."

"Fighting gives quite an adrenalin rush, I'll admit that, but I never liked war at all. Peace and quiet is a nice thing to finally have. And I have it here."

Yukino had to chuckle. His idea of peace and quiet was weird. An inn was anything but peaceful and quiet. All day long there were people shouting at other people for this thing and that thing, this order and that. It was even worse at night. But she guessed it was better than hearing gunfire and explosions overhead.

Wait a minute….Shichiroji rejected the offer? She must still be dizzy, and she had heard wrong.

He patted his comrade on the back. "Don't you worry about me, alright, Kusano? It's a respectable living, even if it is in the pleasure quarter. Come visit once in a while."

"Yes, I will," the man smiled as he stood to leave. "I never thought you could play a shamisen so well, sir. I want to hear it again. Have a good life here, lieutenant." He bowed to the couple and left them in the room.

Yukino looked at him, he looked at her. "You're staying here? You're really staying?" she asked, not sure of what she heard.

"You don't want me to?" he asked.

"I want you to stay, idiot!" She gave him another hug. "I'm glad you're staying!"

"That makes two of us," he said.

"But you do have to promise me…" she added. "Stop breaking the plates!"

He scratched his head and grinned. "Yes, ma'am."

………………………………..

Thus, days turned to weeks, and weeks to months.

"Yukino-san!" a piercing shriek was heard from downstairs.

"What is it now?" the geisha groaned from under her blanket, that cold early morning.

"Momotaro-san broke the plates again!"

As soon as the reply came, someone opened the door to her bedroom and slunk with a back to the wall. "Ohayo, it's a beautiful day…."

"Shichiroji, how many times have I told you to stay away from the kitchen?" she muttered, still under the blanket.

"But the soup smelled so good…."

"Get out. I want to sleep."

"But, Yukino…"

"Don't make me shout at you."

"Alright." He went to the door, closed it, then opened it again slightly. "Anyone told you how pretty you look, half-angry in the morning?"

"MOMOTARO!"

"I'm going, I'm going!" The bedroom door slid shut finally.

There were still many days when Yukino wondered why she agreed to living with such an annoying, irritating man. She kept wondering why she tolerated his teasing ways and his recklessness in the kitchen. She still wondered why she always took his side when broken dishes or ruined windows were discussed.

Maybe it was for those times he was not annoying. When he went out of his way to master a new piece or a new dance routine. When he tried to make them smile when a customer cheated on his payment. When he risked metal arm and normal arm, swinging his staff against a rowdy intruder.

But then, maybe it was a combination of both those times. He was exasperating, but he was special.

Only five minutes had elapsed since Shichiroji left, when the bedroom door opened again.

"Sorry, I forgot to do this," he said. He suddenly knelt down, brought his face to her level, and gave her a heart-stopping kiss to the lips.

She felt time stand still, while his lips locked with hers. She blinked after he released her. "What in the world was that for?"

"For looking so pretty when you're mad at me." He landed another peck on the cheek. "See you at practice later." He grinned and closed the door behind him.

She did not know if she was supposed to be glad or annoyed. "SHICHIROJI, BAKA YAROU! AIIIIIYA!"

She could not live with him, but she could no longer live without him, either.

He was part of her life now. She would have it no other way.

………………………………

My thanks to calreflector, Samuraiko, junyortrakr, and Fauna-chan for all the nice reviews. Thanks for making my day. I'm sorry for not being able to give individual replies, but for now I suck at them. You all have my gratitude for all the comments. Once again thanks to all the people at the Samurai 7 LJ community for the initial brainstorming.

My reference material comes from the Immortal Geisha site, plain old Googling, Wikipedia inquiries into geisha, shamisen, and taikomochi (then I followed the external links), what I could more or less remember from reading Memoirs of a Geisha.

Thank you for liking this little piece. I liked writing it. EK out.


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